Ali
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Meaning
"lofty, sublime" (Arabic root ʿalā, "to be high"); name of the fourth caliph, the central figure of Shia Islam
The story
Ali holds several histories in three letters, and they should not be collapsed into one. In Arabic it means lofty or sublime. Ali ibn Abi Talib, cousin and son-in-law of the prophet Muhammad, became the fourth caliph and remains a central figure in Islam, especially in Shia tradition. Centuries later, the boxer born Cassius Clay announced that his name was Muhammad Ali, making Ali familiar far beyond Muslim communities while insisting that the world address him on his own terms. In English-speaking families, Ali can also develop independently as a short form of Alison, Alexandra, Alina, or other names. That Western nickname route is not the source of the Arabic name; it simply meets it in the same compact spelling. The result is unusually rich: a name of faith and history, a declaration of chosen identity, and an affectionate everyday short form. Its brevity is not emptiness. Ali is small enough to travel easily and old enough to carry worlds.
The formal names behind Ali
Ali is also an established short form of each of these names.
Alice · Germanic origin · "of noble kind," from Adalheidis worn down through Old French Aalis; a medieval queen's name that Lewis Carroll sent down the rabbit hole into permanent storybook fame. The vintage revival returned it to the top tier across Europe and beyond
Alina · Germanic origin · a short form of Adelina, Albina and other names ending in alina; the Adelina route is linked to "noble"
How popular is Ali around the world?
In the United States, 6,820 babies were named Ali between 2020 and 2025. In Norway, 42 boys were given the name Ali in 2025.
Ali is on the official records of the United States, Norway, Austria, France, Canada, England and Wales, Mexico City, New South Wales, South Australia, Ireland, Scotland, New Zealand, Spain, Argentina, Chile, Poland and Brazil.
Ali crosses languages: it is in the latest top 300 of an English-speaking birth record and of a Spanish-speaking one. The full list: English and Spanish
United States
1 in 3,200
In the United States, 6,820 babies were named Ali between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Ali peaked in the 2000s and the 2020s in nearly equal measure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
Norway
1 in 670register 2026
In Norway, 42 boys were given the name Ali in 2025.
share of the boys on the register for that year, SSB’s own figure
People who have or have had a Norwegian ID number, emigrants left out, from Statistics Norway’s name statistics (release of January 2026): by year of birth for 1945–2020 (everyone born that year who was ever registered in Norway, including people who registered later and people who have since died) and by year of naming from 2021; only first names carried by 200 or more living people are listed, counts under 4 are withheld, and SSB merges spellings that differ only by letters outside the Norwegian alphabet. The shares are SSB’s own, of the people of that sex and year in that count; the 2025 figure counts the children named that year, and no year is a count of births. Source: Statistics Norway (SSB), table 10467 (updated 2026-01-28)
Austria
1 in 720
In Austria, 106 boys named Ali were born in 2025, the 69th most common name among boys that year, spellings that differ only by special characters counted together.
share of that year’s births on record
Live births in Austria by year of birth, 1984–2025, from Statistik Austria’s first-name statistics; spellings that differ only by special characters are counted together (umlauts stay apart), every name down to a single birth is published, and the count covers babies with Austrian citizenship only until 2009, every baby from 2010, and from 2015 also births abroad to mothers living in Austria. Shares divide by Statistik Austria’s count of live births from 2010, and before that by the file’s own total for the year. Source: Statistik Austria - data.statistik.gv.at (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1, updated 2026-07-09)
France
1 in 790
In France, about 810 boys named Ali were born in 2025, the 73rd most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s births on record
Births in France by year of birth, from INSEE’s fichier des prénoms (1900–2025; Mayotte from 2012); exact spellings count separately (Léo and Leo are different names), any spelling under 3 in a year and sex is withheld at source, every count is rounded to the nearest 5 at source, and nametree keeps the spellings that reached 20 in some year. Shares divide by INSEE’s count of births in France from 1957, and before that by the file’s own total for the year; INSEE says the file is not complete before 1946. Source: Insee, fichier des prénoms (last updated 2026-07-16)
Canada
1 in 950
In Canada, 383 boys named Ali were born in 2024, the 70th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
England and Wales
1 in 1,200
In England and Wales, 502 boys named Ali were born in 2025, the 103rd most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
Mexico City City
1 in 1,200
In Mexico City, there were 96 registrations of Ali in 2022.
share of that year’s registrations in the city
Civil-registry acts in Mexico City by registration year. Counts are lower bounds (names under 6 in a month and borough are removed at source) and count name-instances, not people; compound names are split, so “Maria Jose” counts under each part. 2023 (5 registrations through 3 Mar) is excluded as partial. Source: Registro Civil of Mexico City, open data portal, registered given names 2000-2023
New South Wales
#58 · 2025
In New South Wales, 132 boys named Ali were registered in 2025, ranked 58th in that year’s top 100 for boys.
share of that year’s top-100 registrations
New South Wales (not all of Australia) publishes only each year’s 100 most popular names per sex, so a missing year means below that top 100, not rare. Source: NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, popular baby names
South Australia
1 in 1,5002017
In South Australia, 12 boys were registered as Ali in 2017.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names
Ireland
1 in 1,700
In Ireland, 25 boys named Ali were born in 2025, the 188th most common name among boys that year.
In Ireland, 7 girls named Ali were born in 2025, the 483rd most common name among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names
Scotland
1 in 2,000
In Scotland, 23 boys named Ali were registered in 2024, the 189th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names
New Zealand
1 in 2,300
In New Zealand, 25 boys named Ali were registered in 2025.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time
Spain
1 in 3,000
In Spain, 14,723 residents are named Ali, the 197th most common name among men, with a mean age of 35.4 years.
Residents of Spain on 1 January 2025. Spain publishes how old a name’s living bearers are, not a birth series, so there is no year chart. Source: INE (Spain), Censo de Población anual, 1 January 2025
Argentina
1 in 6,400
In Argentina, 103 newborns were given the name Ali in 2024.
share of that year’s name registrations
Given-name components of births in Argentina 2012–2024; national cells are lower bounds and no sex split is published. Source: RENAPER (Argentina), Dirección Nacional de Población, given names 2012-2024
Chile
1 in 13,000
In Chile, 14 boys were registered as Ali in 2021, every accent spelling counted together.
share of that year’s name registrations
First-name registrations with Chile’s civil registry by year of registration, 1920–2021, counted as spelling groups (Sofía, Sofia and Sofìa are one name, shown with its most-registered spelling); the registry withholds nothing, nametree keeps the groups that reached 5 registrations in some year, and shares divide by every registration of the year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil e Identificación (Chile) via the guaguas package, first-name registrations 1920-2021
Poland
1 in 14,000
In Poland, 17 boys named Ali were born in 2025, the 270th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First names given to children born in Poland by year of birth, 2000–2025, from the PESEL population register (Ministry of Digital Affairs); exact spellings count separately (Łukasz and Lukasz are different names), names given fewer than 5 times in a year were left off the list through 2012 and fewer than 2 times from 2013, and the register also counts children born abroad, so its yearly sums run above Poland’s live births. Shares divide by the register’s own published total for the year, never by births. This registry counts each spelling separately; the figures above are for the exact spelling Ali, and accented spellings are separate names. Source: Ministry of Digital Affairs, PESEL register (dane.gov.pl)
Brazil
1 in 91,000
At the 2022 census, 2,259 people in Brazil were named Ali, ranked 4,711th, with a median age of 34.
Among people named Ali living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 1990s than in any other decade.
people alive at the 2022 census, by decade of birth
The census also counted 120 born between 2020 and August 2022, too recent a span to chart. People alive and resident in Brazil at the 2022 census, a living-population count, not births; names under 20 are withheld at source. Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
Montevideo City
last on record 2010
Ali is not on the 2011 record for Montevideo, whose registry withholds nothing, so the spelling was not given there that year.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.
Births in the department of Montevideo (not all of Uruguay) by first name and year of birth, 1940–2011, from the city’s civil registry, which writes names in capitals, almost always without accents; counted as spelling groups (accent and punctuation variants merged), nothing is withheld at source, and 2012 is excluded as a partial year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil, Intendencia de Montevideo, Partidas de Registro Civil de Montevideo (Licencia de Datos Abiertos - Uruguay); 2012 dropped as partial
Not on the record in Puerto Rico: that registry withholds small counts, so rare uses may sit below its floor.
When you meet Ali
Most people given the name Ali in the United States are teenagers or young adults today.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
The meeting point
The two meanings, "noble" and "exalted," are near-synonyms by pure coincidence.
Ali · Arabic عليّ, "lofty, exalted," the name of the fourth caliph
Alison · an English short form of Alison or Alice, from the Germanic adal, "noble": Ali Larter was born Alison
Where Ali travels
Urdu and Pakistani · pan-Islamic anchor name, in Pakistan often doubled into compounds (Ali Hassan, Muhammad Ali) rather than standing alone
Keep exploring
Urdu and Pakistani baby names · Turkish baby names · Arab American baby names · Persian baby names · Arabic baby names · Short names · What is Ali short for?
The Ali deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Ali truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Ali fits with your family’s names and surname.
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